Gems Versus Tyrant
by Mr-Herp-Derp
Summary: The Crystal Gems are forced to travel to an unfamiliar planet to rescue Steven. They soon learn that the King of the planet is very Gem hostile, but find an ally who badly wants to overthrow him. But this King is not alone, and all of his allies seem to have a bone to pick them like a personal vendetta. Can this unlikely team overthrow the King? Pearl/FC.
1. Prologue

Prologue

He sat on this throne, in a room as black and as cold as his heart. He was tall, brutishly powerful, and ruthless as anyone could be, and maybe even more so. Across his back was a massive broadsword, normally requiring two hands. Yet he was such a powerful and skilled warrior, he could wield it in one. Every inch of the sword was crusted with the blood of its victims.

He never washed the sword. Why would he? Every drop of crusted blood was a badge of honor, a souvenir from everyone he had killed. His throne faced out the window of his citadel, where he could overlook the land that he had conquered. The people down there were afraid of him, and he had not a qualm about it.

He did not need the petty love of some peasants, as them loving him would soften him. No, the best way was for them to fear him. Make sure they were too afraid of the punishment for rebelling against him to even dream about it. Suddenly, the door behind him opened. He swiveled his throne around to see who it was.

In walked a woman who was tall and lean, and as beautiful as they came. Her slender figure lacked any and all excess fat, lean muscles showed she took great care of herself, but could also handle herself in a fight. Her ivory locks ran down to her shoulders, her blue skin as cold as her heart. Her teeth were white and perfect, something most actors would kill for. Her eyes were a piercing green, two liquid pools that showed only loyalty to the most wicked man in the galaxy.

She approached him, in her arms a small, pudgy boy. He wore a pink shirt with a yellow star on the chest, with blue pants and red sandals. The boy was asleep in the woman's arms, but it was not a sleep of comfort. His face was wet, with a fearful expression under the tears. The big man waited until the woman was within arm's reach of him, then he ran his fingers through the boy's ebony hair. The boy shuddered and whimpered in his sleep, yet he did not awaken.

"The process is proceeding well," said the woman, her voice both beautiful and frightening at the same time, "soon he will remember nothing of his home, or those Gems."

"Excellent," said the figure on the throne, "you serve your master well." The woman beamed,

"It is my greatest pleasure and honor to serve you," she said. From behind her, a man in a fierce looking suit of red armor ran in.

"Sir," he said, "I've just received urgent news."

"Speak!" Demanded the big man,

"He...he has escaped, sir." The big man rubbed his temple,

"I should have known my best prison could not hold him," he said, annoyed, "after all, I trained him personally." He looked back up at the messenger in crimson armor, "How many of your men did he kill?"

"None, sir," said the messenger in red, "he only left the guards he encountered with minor injuries." At this point, the big man on the throne laughed loudly.

"Then he is weak!" he roared in laughter, "If this is the man after me, we have nothing to worry about." Soon, his laughter subsided, and his serious expression returned. "Continue the process, Oracle," he said to the cyan skinned woman, "and bring him to me when you finish." Oracle bowed, careful not to drop the boy,

"At once!" She said, then turned on her heel and left without a word. When the two were alone, he focused his attention on the man in red,

"Now then, Captain," he said, "I know what that goody two shoes is trying to do. I want you to see to it he does not succeed." Captain bashed his fist against his armor, a sign of respect for the king that all the men he led would do for him,

"I will make him regret everything he's done!"

"Good," said the man, dryly, "Now get to it!" The man did the gesture again, before leaving, the doors shutting behind him. When the ruler was alone again, he swiveled his throne back around and looked back out the window.

"I know you're out there somewhere," he said, "and that nuisance that I once trusted with my life is looking for you. Bah, let him look, then." He paused, before smirking wickedly, "he will bring you both right to me!" The king roared in evil laughter, not knowing that a set of three powerful but beautiful entities were now entering his world.


	2. Arrival

Chapter One

Arrival

Garnet took a moment to survey her surroundings. The planet they were presented with, at least this portion of it, was green and lush. The trio was in a forest like area, with a stream running through it, the water being so blue, it looked fake. The sun, or this solar system's equivalent of it, was peeking through the leaves and foliage, just like it did on Earth. As much as she wanted to explore, and see more similarities between this planet and Earth, that wasn't in the cards.

"The sooner we find Steven," said Pearl, clearly not feeling safe, "the better."

"Agreed," said Garnet, "now, I'm going to try to see if I can figure out where he is." Garnet began to attempt to use her Future Sight. Her third eye beginning to power up. But before she could get anything solid, her vision was filled by a wicked looking face. It smirked at her, with blue skin, white hair, and equally white teeth. The emerald, liquid eyes of the face were unlike anything Garnet had seen.

"Nice try, Gemini!" The face mocked, "But as long as I draw breath, you are not seeing anything but your own demise." The smirk degenerated into a scowl. "You gems are not welcome here. My lord and master's plans will not be deterred. Meanwhile, I shall see to it you do not find your boy. He is ours now." The face laughed a sinister laugh, before Garnet's Future Vision was cut off, but not of her doing. She let out a loud grunt, then dropped to one knee like she was about to propose.

"Are you alright?" Asked Pearl, "You were grunting like something was hurting you." It wasn't until Pearl had said that that Garnet realized she had a splitting headache.

"I'll be fine," she said, standing up, "but it seems that someone doesn't want me to use my Future Sight. We're flying blind here." That didn't help Pearl's already nervous state, Garnet could tell.

"If someone can disrupt your vision without even being near you," spoke Amethyst, "that already means this one's not like anything we've faced."

"Which means we need to be on our guard," said Garnet. "Now then, let's spread out and search the area." Pearl and Amethyst nodded, and each Gem began walking in a different direction. As Pearl searched around the tree line, hoping for some kind of clue, she heard a rustling sound.

"Who's there?" she asked, hoping against hope it was Steven. However, her false hopes were realized as numerous figures sprang out of the foliage. The figures wore beige armor, bulky but effective. A black visor on the face of the helmet meant only their mouths, chins, and necks were visible under said armor. Their weapons were drawn, razor sharp swords and heavy but powerful shields.

Pearl knew she had no choice but to fight them. She summoned her spear and braced herself. The guards began banging their swords against their shields. Pearl hoped the noise would attract the other gems. The sounds of two pairs of charging feet approaching from behind startled her at first, but then seeing who it was, she felt alright.

"Stay on guard, gems!" ordered Garnet, summoning her gauntlets and putting her fists up. Amethyst cracked her already drawn whips.

"You're not welcome here!" One of the guards spoke,

"Our king hates gems!" Another one spat at them, disgusted.

"A slow, painful death awaits all of you!" Said yet another guard, before all of them charged. Pearl held her spear up and charged at one of them, but he grabbed the shaft of it before it could hit him, making the spear stop dead. Pearl tried to yank it back, but before she could, he spun it so hard that she was thrown away from the spear, landing on her back at the feet of another guard. He reached down for her, but she launched her foot into his jaw, making him recoil. This gave her a moment to trip the guard, and then summon her sword.

The soldier who had taken her spear threw it at her, blindingly fast, yet she was able to dodge it. She then charged at him with the sword, and clashed it against his own. She underestimated how powerful he was, because the shock jolted down to her elbows, as she yelped. He took advantage of her momentary weakness and kicked her in the gut. Pearl shouted in pain, but was able to recover and strike the guard in the side of the helmet with her blade.

It must have done a number on him, because he staggered to the side, allowing Pearl to bash his head with the hilt of the sword. He dropped to his knees, giving Pearl a chance to summon another spear and bash his noggin again, knocking him out cold. Pearl heard someone charging behind her, and she whipped around, only to be greeted with a fist to the face. It was a crippling blow, and she staggered backwards, before falling onto her butt.

The soldier who hit her then dove on top of her. It would have knocked the wind out of her if she needed to breathe, but it still really hurt. The guard raised his sword, but was thrown off of her before he could do anything. Garnet stood over Pearl.

"You okay?" she asked, offering a hand. But before Pearl could take it, another soldier shoulder barged into her with great force. Garnet was knocked back, but not hurt by it. The enemy tried again, but this time she was ready. Garnet drove her fist into his face, knocking him out cold.

Before she had time to see if Pearl was okay, she was slammed in the back, this time by a battle ax. It hurt more than the shoulder barge, but she still didn't flinch. The guard seemed put off by this, before he swung again. This time, Garnet ducked and planted a powerful blow into his gut, causing him to recoil, drop his weapon, and gasp for air. She then grabbed the villain by the shoulders and picked him up, so he was at eye level with her…well, her first two eyes anyway.

"Love is stronger than anything," she taunted, "even air." Then she smashed her noggin against his, thus rendering him down and out. Meanwhile, on another part of the battleground, Amethyst showed the beige clad bozos that her two whips were nothing to sneeze at. Whether in the head, the torso, arms, or legs, Amethyst's whips showed she was not to be taken lightly, despite her small stature.

"Get her!" roared one of them "she's a midget, how hard can it be?"

"Judge me by my size, do you?" Taunted the purple whip bearing gem, and lashed her whips at a tree branch above her. She yanked hard, was launched towards a group of the enemy soldiers standing in some kind of formation that resembled the pins in a bowling alley. The formation, however, couldn't withstand the sheer force of Amethyst's swing, and she knocked every last one of them over, a few of them even getting knocked out.

"Str-rike!" Cried Amethyst.

The fighting continued for hours, none of the crystalline warriors showing any signs of exhaustion or struggles. But suddenly, a deep and powerful voice briefly froze them in their tracks.

"STOP!" The owner of the voice was roughly as tall as Garnet, minus her hair. He was ripped, in shape, like one of those hollywood action heroes. He wore red armor, with a brutal looking helmet, and together with said helm, the armor resembled a dragon.

"I will say," said the red armor clad figure, clapping slowly, "you have managed to put my men to shame. Normally I'd recruit such warriors into my army...however, given that you are gems, and this kingdom doesn't allow for those...I'm afraid I'll have to kill you instead."

"You're gonna do that?" Garnet taunted, "If you fight as good as you train troops, this won't take long." This only garnered a smirk.

"I never said I'd be fighting you." He said, and raised an arm. Before the Gems could question his gesture, the sound of splitting treetops rang out. They looked up, just in time to see a huge, flaming boulder crash on top of their heads.

"Too easy!" said the man in red, then bellowed to his troops who were still conscious, "DIG THEM OUT!" Apparently, his men were much better diggers than fighters, as it took mere minutes for them to dig out the warriors. But all they found was one ruby, one sapphire, one amethyst, and one pearl. One of the men brought them to his leader.

"Hello?!" Captain taunted, as he tapped the gems with nary a scratch or crack on any of them, "is anyone in there?" He gave a loud whistle, and a few moments later, a large, blackish green lizard ran to him. Captain looked at the beast, seeing the resentment for the man he was forced to call his master, brushing it off with a smirk. Then he placed the gems into the saddlebag and mounted his lizard ride.

"I am going to personally take these gems to the Sonic Yard. The rest of you lot tend to the wounded and clean up this forest." The currently conscious soldiers bashed their fists against their armor. As Captain rode off, a figure in one of the few untouched treetops watched. She had long red hair, running to the middle of her back. Her skin as white as clouds and as fair as cream, and soft to the touch. She was about as tall as the average eighteen year old girl.

"Oh no!" she said, "I've got to warn Mr. J!" Beautiful but delicate wings sprouted from her back, and flapped and fluttered so fast they couldn't be seen by the naked eye. The beautiful figure took off flying, in the hopes she found Mr. J before Captain found the Sonic Yard.


	3. Rescue

Chapter Two

Rescue

He stood over his defeated, but not dead, enemies. Their bulky, beige armor was taken from them, leaving them with a shirt and boxers. The man wasn't completely cruel; he refused to rob the men of their lives, and denied the villagers that action as well, as much as the men may have deserved it. But alas, at least according to him, they were not to blame for their deeds; Goliath was a cruel man, making Captain make them do this, or they'd die. So in a way, this was a much fairer way of dealing with them. His thoughts were breached by an old man's voice.

"I don't know how we can thank you, Sir Jedidiah." The voice said. Our man turned to face him.

"Just don't kill the men, or do anything cruel," said Jedidiah, "and that's just Jedidiah; I am not a knight anymore."

"Poppycock!" Cried the Village Elder, "You're more of a knight than these boys," he gestured at the still KO'd guards, "will ever amount to. You're fair, you're noble, but you also can knock a few heads with nary a sweat."

"Well I appreciate it," said the former knight, running his hand through his neck length brown hair, "but the point still stands; I defied Goliath, and that removed my noble status. I'm just a man now." The Elder seemed to want to keep arguing with the hero about whether or not he was a knight, but a female voice called him, pulling him out of the argument. Jedidiah heard two pairs of feet, and a rickety wheel, approaching him. He turned to see two male figures. One of them was a head taller than the other, but the shorter one looked older, leading Jedidiah to suspect these men were father and son.

"We got the wheelbarrow for you, Sir Jedidiah," said the younger man, his greasy red hair shining in the sun, "what should we do with it?" Jedidiah nearly corrected him, but decided it was a moot point to those he protected.

"Take the armor to the steel mill. There's enough metal to melt down and arm the able bodied ones here to fend off the knights."

"You've done so much for us," proclaimed the father, "is there anything we can do for you?"

"You don't need to," said Jedidiah, "I've helped you, and my reward is knowing you will be able to protect yourselves better and live out your lives in relative peace." Just as the two men began pushing the barrow to the steel mill, Jedidiah's ears were filled with a familiar buzz. He turned his head, to see his redheaded friend flying towards him.

"Mr. J! Mr. J!" She cried,

"Beatrice," said Jedidiah, rolling his eyes playfully, "if I've told you once, I've told you ten thousand times, either call me Jed or Jedidiah. None of this Mr. J nonsense."

"Sorry," she said, her ritual after being corrected, "anyway, I've seen some Gems!"

"Gems?" Said Jedidiah, "You're sure they were Gems?" Beatrice nodded, her red hair bouncing as she did,

"But they were taken by Captain! And he's taking them to the Sonic Yard!"

"Which one?" Asked Jedidiah, "There's more than one Sonic Yard, you know."

"The closest one was the one west of the Church Of Saint Sugar."

"Then we've no time to lose." Said Jedidiah. "We have to cut him off at the pass." Beatrice nodded, and began getting smaller in a hurry. In seconds, she was so small she could fit in Jedidiah's ear, and that's just what she did. Jedidiah took off running.

…

A wise man had once told Jedidiah that when a knight is relieved of duty without death, doing physical work in plain clothes can take a great toll on a man. Jedidiah wasn't sure about that, given the man hadn't lived to test that theory himself. But Jedidiah didn't find himself trusting it. He'd been wearing heavy, thick armor for nine years with many weapons on him to boot. So running in plain clothes with just a sword, bow, and quiver? No problem. Jedidiah personally thought the opposite was true.

The former knight kept running, and soon he heard the sound of a voice; a voice he knew.

"So," said a deep, menacing voice, "you found some Gems and single handedly defeated them, and are now taking them to The Sonic Yard adjacent to that damnable church?"

"Yes my lord," said the other voice. Jedidiah got close enough to listen, but kept out of sight behind a bush. A tactic that had saved his life more times than he cared to mention. "I should be there within the hour."

"Good," said the deep voice. Jedidiah could see them; Captain on his black Field Treader, talking to Goliath, a man whose employment Jedidiah had only recently fallen out of. But Goliath seemed shorter than normal. "As soon as you finish this, get back to work finding that blasted Jedidiah."

"I will, my king!" Said Captain, banging his fist against his chest plate. Then, Goliath began glowing, and soon, standing in his place was Oracle. She gave a shudder.

"I hate being him," she said,

"I think he does too sometimes," said Captain.

"I must get back now," said Oracle, "the boy is taking longer than expected to fall to my spell, but he should be perfectly ours within a few days." Without another word to Captain, Oracle spoke an incantation, and vanished in a bright flash. Jedidiah's eyes were covered enough for him to be unaffected by the flash. Captain, on the other hand, was right in it, and our man could see him rubbing his eyes. He looked up above him to see an overhanging branch in the tree above the path that Captain was on, right in line with him, even. Jedidiah jumped up quickly and grabbed the branch, swinging down quickly with his leg fully extended. His foot collided with Captain's helmet, and he was quickly knocked off of his Field Treader.

Captain landed on the ground, knocked completely unconscious. Jedidiah, however, landed perfectly on the Field Treader. Beatrice came from his ear and looked in the saddlebag.

"All of them are accounted for, Mister, I mean, Jedidiah."

"Good," said Jedidiah, "let's take them to the Church. Maybe they can help me out. And I haven't visited Father Rynok in a while, so this should be a treat." Jedidiah gave a kick to the Field Treader, and it took off.

"Beatrice," said the former knight, "think you can call up a bit of rain?" Beatrice looked at the sky. Conditions were perfect for such a thing. Beatrice raised her hand skyward and muttered an incantation, much different from Oracle's. A thunderclap indicated success, and within seconds, rain was coming down in sheets. While Jedidiah couldn't fully see, he'd taken this road hundreds of times in the last nine years, and he could take this route blindfolded.

…

Before long, Jedidiah arrived at the church, and he took the saddlebag from the Field Treader. Captain could have it back as soon as he found it. But before stashing it in a nearby barrel, he took out the four gems. The sapphire, the ruby, the pearl and the amethyst, all unharmed, but warm to the touch. Jedidiah clenched his fist around them to keep them safe, dropped the bag into the barrel and came back to the Field Treader. He could see it in the beast's eyes; it hated the saddle, and it had hated Captain.

He drew his sword, and gently but swiftly cut the saddle, as it collapsed to the ground, with nary a scratch on the lizard. The lizard knew what this meant; it was now free. It jolted off into the nearby woods, disappearing in seconds. Jedidiah stepped into the church, his boots clattering against the stone floors. It would be time for Father Rynok's supper, and Jedidiah knew the man didn't like to be disturbed while he was eating, so he went to the nearby area in the church with many shelves full of books and a few tables and chairs.

He sat down, and placed the Gems on the table in front of him. Beatrice came out of his ear again and grew, but not to her full size. She grew about the size of the average toddler and sat down on the table itself.

"So," said Jedidiah, "Captain hit them with a flaming boulder, and they're currently inside their gems?" Beatrice nodded.

"I don't know how long it'll take them to come out of their gems, but they should soon." Soon, a voice called out to them.

"Ah, Sir Jedidiah," said the voice of Father Rynok. He was a man much shorter than in his prime, and his voice had raised to go with it. "I was wondering if you could help me with something. I cannot seem to perform the duties that involve any kind of lifting in my old age." Jedidiah knew better than to ask, as he left his post to go help the old preacher.

Beatrice began to feel cold, and she looked over to the left. There she saw a fireplace, where a monk had just set up a roaring fire. Perfect, she thought, as she took the gems to the fireplace with her. She laid the gems on the ground, near the fire, but they wouldn't get too burned. She herself sat down on one of the chairs, which was big enough to be a bed for her at this moment. Though the chair wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world, it was much better than the stone ground she used to sleep on. Before long, her eyelids grew too heavy to keep open, and she descended into sleep.

A few minutes after Beatrice went to sleep, the Gems started to glow a bit. Forms exited the Gems, and the gems took their respective spots on the forms. Soon, the forms came clear: Pearl, Amethyst, Sapphire and Ruby were all back out of their gems.

"Where are we?" Asked Amethyst, "Last I can remember, we were fighting those dumb butts in that forest when-"

"THAT NUMBSKULL IN RED ARMOR!" Shouted Ruby, "I SWEAR, NEXT TIME I SEE HIM, I'M GONNA KICK HIS BUTT SO HARD HE'LL-" a hand rested on Ruby's shoulder, silencing her.

"Easy, Ruby." Said Sapphire, "You will have your revenge later. Right now, we need to figure out where we are." Sapphire turned to Pearl and Amethyst, "split up, search this place." Pearl and Amethyst nodded, heading in different directions.

…

Pearl soon found herself in a sea of bookshelves. She could see the spines of said books were bare, so she grabbed one at random and pulled it open. To her surprise, despite being on another planet, the pages were written in perfect English. The book in question was about some deity, assumingly the one that this church worshiped. Pearl closed the book and put it back on the shelf, and found herself getting wound up, worrying over Steven. She tried taking a few deep breaths, despite not needing to breathe, but it didn't seem to help.

Meanwhile, Jedidiah was returning from helping Father Rynok, when suddenly, he saw something out of the corner of his eye. He looked, and saw someone, someone new. Could it be one of the gems? He went over to her, making sure she heard his footsteps. But rather than her not being scared of him, she turned around faster than he could register, grabbed the hilt of his sword, and pushed him back with her foot. This knocked him back, and unsheathed his sword.

"WHAT DO YOU WANT?!" Demanded the woman. She had whiter than normal skin, borderline cream colored, with brownish pinkish hair. She had a pearl lodged in her forehead, assumingly because it was her gem, and a large pointed nose. She wore a blue sleeveless top that ran to her waist, with a yellow star on the chest, a teal scarf around her stomach. She had on yellow shorts, pink socks, and what appeared to be teal ballet slippers.

"Easy, easy," said Jedidiah, raising his hands defensively, "I just want to apologize."

"FOR WHAT?!" She demanded through gritted teeth. Jedidiah moved his foot behind her, tripping her, causing her to drop his sword so he could reclaim it.

"That." he said. The pearl headed woman glared at him,

"You sneaky little-" She started to snarl,

"Ah ah ah," Jedidiah interjected "Watch your mouth, you're in a church."

"Charming," said the woman, then a spear materialized in her hand, "but it won't help you." She began thrusting the spear at him. Jedidiah knew that Father Rynok would be furious if his precious books were damaged, so he backpedaled out of the isle of books, while still dodging the spear strikes, until they were out of there, thankfully the volumes remained untouched in the fight. Jedidiah, now with elbow room and not needing to worry about the books, began to deflect the spear attacks.

"Why are you attacking?" Demanded the spear woman.

"You're attacking," replied Jedidiah, "I'm defending." He managed to deflect her spear to the floor, and it got stuck. As its owner tried to pull it out, Jedidiah used the opportunity to grab her and push her into a pillar,

"Please," he said, calmly, despite nearly having been gutted, "I am not your enemy. In fact, if it weren't for me and a friend of mine, you'd be dead." The woman seemed confused by the statement, but she at least calmed down enough to listen. Jedidiah sighed.

"Look," he said, "Let's start over." He backed up, giving her room to move. The woman didn't go on the attack, thankfully. But Jedidiah heard three pairs of charging feet and looked in that direction. Three other gems were charging at him, but the woman stood before him.

"It's okay," she said, putting her hands up to stop them, "I misunderstood. He's not an enemy." The other gems seemed to accept what she said, stopping their advance. The woman turned back around to face Jedidiah.

"So who are you?" She asked.

"Jedidiah," said the man, offering his hand for the woman to shake, "And you?"

"My name is Pearl," she said, shaking his hand, albeit with some reluctance. She gestured to the gems behind her, who were approaching.

"These are Ruby, Sapphire, and Amethyst." Sapphire stepped forth.

"What is the name of this planet, sir?" She asked him.

"This is Donokin," said Jedidiah. "And you don't need to stand on ceremony. You can just call me Jedidiah, or Jed if that suits you better. I take it you're from another planet, then?" Sapphire nodded,

"Someone very near and dear to us was taken to this planet, and we need him back. Can you help us? Given your fight with Pearl, you seem very adequate with a sword to say the least."

"Sure," said Jedidiah, "but Quid Pro Quo."

"Squid Pro Row?" Asked Amethyst.

"No," said Pearl, "Quid Pro Quo. It means he wants us to help him in exchange for him helping us."

"What must we do?" Asked Sapphire.

"I'm trying to overthrow the king," said Jedidiah, "and I need to find the prince to do it. He's been in hiding for a year. So, if you help me find the prince, I'll help you find the boy."

"Anything to get back at those jerks!" Cried Ruby, who took her place next to Sapphire. "I'm in!"

"I like your enthusiasm, Ruby," Sapphire spoke, "I shall join you, as well."

"We need all the help we can get," said Amethyst. "I'm on board."

"If the others are," said Pearl, "then so am I."

"We'll help you, Jedidiah," said Sapphire, "where do we start?"

…

Captain woke up, soaking and cold, and given the feeling inside of him, he had a cold too. He pushed himself off the ground, to see that his saddlebag and ride were gone. The rain meant that no tracks were left, so he did not know which way his stuff had gone. Only one man on all of Donokin would have the gall to do this to him. He raised his fists to the sky and yelled with all his might to the heavens.

"JEDIDIAH! ONE DAY, I WILL WATCH YOU SUFFER! I WILL HAVE MY REVENGE FOR THIS!"


	4. The Adventure Begins

Chapter Three

The Adventure Begins

Pearl sat at a table, looking over the piece of parchment again. She'd heard of many ways to calm down on the way to Donokin. Drawing, breathing, sleeping, etc. She'd tried breathing, and that hadn't helped, so now she was trying another; drawing. But this planet didn't have pen and paper as she knew it; it had parchment and ink, and she'd been lucky to convince Father Rynok to hand some over. She had tried drawing what was on her mind, which of course was Steven. She was getting increasingly worried; this had never happened before. Unknown enemies taking him to an unknown planet for an unknown reason, and they had to get him back before….before what? Pearl didn't know how she planned to answer that question, and she didn't want to find out.

A solid thunk on the table startled Pearl, causing her to splash ink all over the parchment. She looked to the direction of the noise; Jedidiah had dropped a rucksack onto the table.

"Sorry," he said, "didn't mean to scare you." Pearl sighed,

"It's okay, I'm just worrying over...over." Her lips began to tremble. Jedidiah pulled the chair out and sat down in front of her.

"The boy?" Asked Jedidiah,

"Yes," she said, "his name is Steven. He's the son of someone very close to me and the other Crystal Gems."

"Crystal Gems?" Asked Jedidiah,

"The group that I belong to, along with Amethyst and Garnet."

"Who is Garnet?" Asked Jedidiah.

"Oh, right," said Pearl, "Gems can fuse into one being, and Garnet is the fusion of Ruby and Sapphire."

"Ah," said Jedidiah, "Who is this Friend?"

"Her name is Rose Quartz," said Pearl, and Jedidiah could tell by her voice trembling a touch that this was a very sensitive subject for her; he'd have to choose his words carefully. "She was...very amazing. Very wise and kind, but a fierce warrior. You never wanted to get on her bad side. She could take down powerful foes easily."

"Did she pass away?" Asked Jedidiah,

"Not quite," said Pearl, "she had to give up her physical form to birth Steven, and give him her gem." Pearl paused and tapped her gem in her forehead,

"Every individual gem has one, but fusions have the gems of all involved in that being. As long as the gem is kept in good condition, Gems can live forever."

"So, they don't need to eat, drink, sleep, or breathe?" Asked Jedidiah. Pearl shook her head no.

"We can eat and sleep," said Pearl, "but we do not need to to sustain life. Amethyst loves eating and sleeping, but she will not die if she stops."

"So, Steven," said Jedidiah, genuine curiosity in his voice, "who is his Father?"

"His name is Greg," said Pearl, "he is a good man, but we did not always get along. I hope he is doing okay, and that Connie can keep him out of trouble until we return with Steven."

"Connie?" Asked Jedidiah,

"She is one of Steven's closest human friends. Humans are the people of Earth. Out of curiosity, what are the people called here?"

"We call ourselves Donokinites," said Jedidiah, "I've not heard of a human."

"I see," said Pearl,

"Indeed," said Jedidiah. "But there is another kind of person on this planet, but they're in hiding, save for one." He reached into his ear, much to Pearl's confusion. What looked like a small person was between his thumb and index finger. They seemed to be sleeping. Jedidiah gave her a gentle squeeze.

"Hey!" the person cried out, their voice tiny and light.

"Say hi to our new ally," said Jedidiah, and set the tiny person on the table, Pearl not taking her eyes off her. The tiny being began to slowly grow, until she was about as tall as Steven. Her skin was fair and soft, her hair a fiery red in wafer thin locks that seemed to go all over the place. Her lips were also red, her eyes an icy blue in contrast to all the red, and her nose just hovering over petite. She wore a vibrant pink dress, and her soft feet were bare.

"Hello," she said, her voice only a touch deeper than when she was in Jedidiah's ear.

"Hello," Pearl returned, "what is your name?"

"Beatrice," said the little one, shifting so she was on her knees, and seemed comfortable doing so, "you?"

"Pearl," the Gem answered. Beatrice extended her hand, and Pearl shook it. Beatrice looked down at the parchment in front of Pearl,

"What were you drawing?" Asked the small red headed one,

"Someone very close to me," said Pearl, fighting to keep her emotions in check, "and we need him back. Jedidiah has agreed to help us." Pearl then looked at Jedidiah, "You mentioned a prince?" She asked him,

"Yes," said the man, "Prince Abu Donokin. He went into hiding a year ago, and to overthrow the king, I need to find him. I've had no luck, so that's why I asked you. He couldn't have gone that far, but how far did he go? That's what I'm trying to figure out." The trio was soon joined by another. Short in stature, with purple skin, and white hair. A purple stone in her chest.

"Hey Jed," she said, taking another chair at the table. In her hand was clutched some bread. She munched on the bread as she observed the party at the table.

"Is that the communion bread?!" Pearl demanded, glaring at the purple bread muncher.

"Nah," said Amethyst, between bites, "one of the monks was eating some, and he got full, so he asked if I wanted it and I said yes. Because hey, free bread." She took another big bite, chewed thoughtfully, and then swallowed.

"So, when do we set out?" she asked, before taking the last bite.

"Soon," said Jedidiah, "but let's wait until...Garnet, was it?" Pearl nodded, and Jedidiah continued. "Joins us, then we'll discuss a plan." As if on cue, another pair of feet was heard approaching. From nowhere (or rather, from around a bookshelf) approached a very tall woman. She had reddish, pinkish skin, wearing massive gauntlets, a pink shirt with stars on the chest and puffy shoulders, and dark red and dark blue pants. Her hair was massive, looking like a helm, and she wore white glasses that covered her eyes completely. She sauntered up to the table and sat down with the party.

"Who is this?" she asked, looking at Beatrice.

"Beatrice," the fairy replied, standing and curtsying to Garnet. "And yourself?"

"Garnet," the woman replied. Beatrice then turned to face Amethyst.

"And you, miss?"

"Amethyst," the purple gem said.

"Now that the pleasantries have been exchanged," said Jedidiah, pulling everyone back on track, "let's get to work on finding your boy and overthrowing the king. Let's start by-" but before he could finish, the front doors of the church swung open, banging loudly against the stone walls that supported them.

"HELP HELP!" cried a voice. The party looked in his direction. The man, clad in a grey robe with blue running down the chest and arms, ran to the table.

"Sir Jedidiah!" he cried, "thank the gods! We need you! Goliath's troops are attacking my village, just down the road to the south. Please help us!" The villager slowed down, noticing the gems, and that they were looking at Jedidiah.

"Sir Jedidiah?" asked Garnet, "Wouldn't that mean you're working for this king? Care to explain yourself, Jed?" Jedidiah stood up.

"I will, on the way. There's people who need us."

"How do we know you're not leading us into a trap?" asked Pearl, "who's to say we should trust you?"

"Please!" cried Beatrice, "Mr. J, er, Jedidiah is good. He used to work for the king. But the king turned bad, and Jedidiah refused to serve him anymore. Now Jedidiah isn't a knight anymore, and is being hunted by those he used to serve. People call him Sir Jedidiah because he still holds the morals that the king once stood for. You've got to believe me." Beatrice began panting like she just outran a monster. After a short silence, Garnet spoke up.

"You'd better hope she's telling the truth, Jed." she said, "otherwise, you're going to regret lying to us." She stood, soon joined by the other Gems. "Let's go then." The man sighed in relief,

"Thank the stars!" he cried out in joy, "I'll lead the way." The man took off running and the others were forced to catch up to him. Since Beatrice was unable to shrink fast enough to fit in Jedidiah's ear, she (with permission of course) settled in Garnet's hair. The run to the village was short, but first impressions were not good. The air was smoky, the smell confirming it. The sounds of screaming and panic becoming more audible as the heroes came closer to the village.

"Beatrice," cried Jedidiah, "care to get some more rain down?"

Beatrice popped out of Garnet's hair and raised her hand, saying her incantation. The thunderclap came, followed by the rain. The rain did help with the fires, but so far had not yet put them out. The first soldiers came out of the town, dragging two women with them.

"It's Jedidiah!" one of them cried,

"And those Gems from the forest!" Cried the other, and they released their hostages, letting them flee back into the village.

"I don't know how you escaped from Captain," snarled one of them to the gems, "but I'll personally take you to the Sonic Yard when we defeat you!"

"And I will get a major promotion when I defeat you, Jedidiah!" Declared the other. Jedidiah didn't seem fazed by the threat. He simply drew his sword,

"I'll believe that when I see it," he taunted. This caused both of the guards to charge. Jedidiah clashed his blade into that of the guard, harder than the guard was anticipating, causing him to drop his sword. Before he could reclaim it, Jedidiah delivered a kick to the side of his head, causing his helmet to fly off. Jedidiah quickly bashed his fist into the man's face, knocking him out cold.

The other guard charged towards the Gems, only for Garnet to knock him out with one blow to the chin. The heroes left the guards to lay on the wet grass and ran into the village. Already the remaining guards were charging, all shouting.

"Gems!"

"Jedidiah!"

"They're working together!"

"Stop them!"

None of the heroes were fazed. Pearl and Amethyst summoned their own weapons and ran with Garnet and Jedidiah into the fray, and the battle began.

"It will bring me much glory to defeat you!" Cried one of the evil knights.

"You and every other knight!" retorted Jedidiah, and deflected the spear strike from the soldier, then drove the blade into the helmet of the soldier, knocking it to the side, but not fully off. Part of the visor lifted up, revealing the sun to one of his eyes. The man was thrown off by this, allowing Jedidiah to strike the man in the face his fist. This caused the man to recoil, his helmet falling off. Jedidiah then drove his elbow into the man's ear, knocking him out.

Two more guards charged at Jedidiah, but he simply stepped to the side, tripped the one to the left, and then shoved him to the right. He crashed into his ally and both came tumbling down. The first man was rendered out cold on impact, but the other got up again. But before he could charge Jedidiah again, a crack broke through the air and the man fell over. Amethyst stood behind the knocked out body,

"Got your back, Jed." she cried. Before she could gloat about it, Jedidiah took out his bow and shot an arrow behind her. She turned to see that the arrow, with a rock in place of a razor sharp arrow head, had knocked out a guard who tried to ambush her.

"You should watch yours," said Jedidiah. Amethyst ran off with Jed to another small skirmish.

Meanwhile, on another part of the battlefield, Pearl had just shoved three soldiers into a water trough, and then kicked it over, soaking all three men in dirty water. They stood and tried to attack her, but she was ready. She stabbed her spear into the dirt and swung, like she was the dancer and the spear was the pole. She kicked all three in the face, knocking all three men out in one fluid motion. She dismounted gracefully, and heard the sound of someone coming up behind her. She whipped around to attack, but stopped; Jedidiah and Amethyst were running to join her.

"It's always better to have partners on a battlefield like this." Said Jedidiah. Pearl nodded. Then she caught Amethyst looking at something. Pearl turned to see guards being launched every which way; Garnet was having a good time. The three warriors ran to join her in the fight. When they reached her, she had a big grin on her face.

"Really, now," she taunted, "this is what counts as effort on this planet?" She saw a soldier running across a wagon to ambush her, but she stomped on the handle, the wagon becoming a catapult, sending him flying to parts unknown. She heard three pairs of feet and turned to see Pearl, Amethyst, and Jedidiah running to her.

"Glad you could make it," she said, and the fighting resumed. The four stood together in a circle, attacking the knights of evil and having a dang good time in the process. After a while of fighting, a voice yelled, "They're too strong! RETREAT!" The Knights fled, leaving their gear to escape. When the dust settled, the heroes could see the fires had been vastly diminished. The villagers were walking out of wherever they were hiding in, and slowly approaching them.

"You have saved our village!" A voice cried out. The heroes turned to see that the same man who had come to them at the church. The villagers began cheering, clapping.

…

The dark castle stood. Looming over the major city of Donokin, built atop The Deathtrap Mountain Range. The sky above the castle was blood red, and white lightning cracked across out with a huge, menacing thunderclap. Goliath Manor stood like a hungry dragon over a hapless village. In the throne room, Goliath paced back and forth, his massive figure stood over seven feet tall. His sword clattered against his thick armor with every step, his shaven head shining with each lightning strike.

"It shouldn't be long now," he said to himself, "that child will be my puppet soon, I can feel it." He heard footsteps approaching, but the feet were too heavy, and wearing metal boots; Not Oracle and the brat. He turned on his heel, to see Captain, who seemed a bit woozy, he was dragging one of his soldiers to the room.

"Now what news do you have for our king?!" demanded Captain. The Soldier did the normal salute, then began.

"Your Highness," he said, "I bring grave news. Jedidiah has teamed up with three gems."

"WHAT!?" demanded Goliath, then turned to Captain, "I am to understand you dealt," he put air quotes around dealt, "with these gems, Captain."

"I was going to," said Captain, "but then that blasted Jedidiah ambushed me and stole them, as well as my bag, and he let my Field Treader go back to its primal state." Goliath nodded,

"Very well," said Goliath, "If that fool wants a war, he's got one." Suddenly, the air was filled with another set of footsteps. Goliath turned to see Oracle approaching him.

"He is ready, your majesty," she said, bowing.

"Excellent," said Goliath, "bring me the Earthling, or should I say, former earthling." Goliath burst into evil laughter.


	5. Steven Who?

Chapter Four

Steven Who?

The massive king stood before the pint sized boy, who was only as tall as the king's shin. Gone was his Earth garb. He now wore a white tunic with green pants, and brown sandals, a large brown belt with an even larger buckle completed the outfit. There were no more tears to be found on the boy's face; instead a look of rock solid determination.

Might as well test this, thought Goliath, and began to speak. "Tell me your name."

"My name is Abu Donokin. Nephew of King Goliath, son of former King David and Queen Desdemona, and future ruler of Donokin." Goliath nodded,

"Good," he said, "now then, do you remember what has happened to you?" Steven (or was he Abu now?) gave a perplexed look.

"No sir," he said, "I do not."

"Allow me to fill in the blanks for you," said Goliath. "As you know, you were born and raised here. But recently, you were abducted by pirates from a planet called Earth." Oracle began projecting images through her hands, showing Earth.

"The people of Earth, known as humans," continued Goliath, "are vile, nasty creatures. Not fit to share this plane of existence with us. Yet, upon further research, we found the planet is full of resources. Clean water, breathable air, a bountiful feast of food, and so on. And as you also may know, our people are running out of these things."

"So," said the brainwashed boy, "we are going to raid the planet, kill its people, and take its resources for ourselves?"

"You catch on quick," said Goliath, "That's exactly what we're going to do. And, since you were on that planet, we need you to lead the attack." The boy's eyes lit up at the prospect of this, an excited smile sliding across his face. "But before we can do that, you must take The Oath. Draw your sword and repeat after me." Goliath drew his massive broadsword off his back and held it high. The boy drew his much smaller sword. Only, his arm shook as he tried to hold it up, the sword clattering against the stone floor. The boy's face flushed with embarrassment.

"Do not worry, my boy," said Goliath, "perhaps being on earth has weakened you. No matter, I shall have Captain see to this matter personally." Goliath turned to Oracle. "Find Captain, tell him his priorities have shifted; I need the prince in peak physical condition for the raid." Oracle bowed,

"At once!" she said, and with an incantation, she was gone.

…

It had been a long time since Captain had had to walk such a long distance, but he finally made it to the church. By the report, he knew that the Gems and Jedidiah were long gone from the church, but he had it on good faith that he could at least find his stuff here. He continued walking, until he saw a large leather bundle on the ground. His saddle. He ran to it, inspecting it. The crucial strap that held it all together was cleanly severed. As much as he hated Jedidiah, Captain had to admit he knew how to handle a sword.

"But then," he muttered to himself, "given he was the Captain Of The Guard before me, that shouldn't come as a surprise." He stood up, and looked by the church. A few barrels caught his eye. He went over to inspect them, seeing one of the lids of the barrels wasn't fully on. He pulled it back, and was glad to finally find his saddlebag. He pulled it out, and growled to find it soaking wet. He dared to look inside; everything in it, from his personal journal to his last issued orders from Goliath, were completely ruined. And without a Field Treader and Saddle to hold the bag anyway, there was no point in lugging a soaked leather sack around, so he simply discarded it back into the barrel. Just as he was about to turn away from the barrel and march to the nearest stable to demand a new ride, a voice caught him off guard.

"Digging through the trash, are we?" Captain let out a surprised yelp, drew his sword, and pointed it at the speaker; the tip of his blade stopping just an inch from Oracle's nose.

"Don't do that!" he snapped at her, "I nearly chopped your nose off."

"Keep telling yourself that," said Oracle, flashing a smirk at him, before her serious expression returned. "Anyway, I have a message from the king." Oracle muttered a different incantation, and a flash occurred, but not as bright as her warping flash. In her place stood a shorter Goliath. Captain Bashed his fist into his armor, but was hard-pressed to hide the painful flash behind his eyes.

"Captain," said the pseudo Goliath. "You can belay your search for Jedidiah for now, something else has come up."

"And what is that, my king?" asked Captain.

"Oracle has succeeded in transforming the Earthling into our puppet, but we didn't count on the boy being so weak. We need you to make sure he gets stronger."

"I shall return to Goliath Manor at once." Said Captain.

"Good," said Not-Goliath, "I expect you back here before sundown." The Goliath imposter flashed white, and Oracle was back in her own body again.

"Can you give me a lift?" asked Captain,

"Sorry," said Oracle, "teleporting two people takes a lot more energy than you'd think; I only have enough to get myself back." Before Captain could object, Oracle muttered her usual teleportation code and was gone. Captain again didn't prepare for the flash and was briefly blinded. He rubbed his eyes with his sore fingers,

"I hate it when she does that." He muttered, then when he could see again, he regained his composure and set off to find a new ride. If he got one soon, he'd make it in time.

…

After hours of riding on borrowed Field Treaders, which Jedidiah had sworn to the farmers would be returned in the same healthy condition they were in when they were borrowed, Jedidiah and Beatrice had grown weary. Unlike the gems, the two needed to stop, fill their bellies, and sleep. As much as Pearl wanted to keep going, she knew she didn't know the planet as well as Jedidiah, and would be lost, and possibly wander into one of the "Sonic Yards" she had heard so much about.

Jedidiah had spent many days just like this one on several journeys taken for his king, so he knew a thing or two about making shelter and food.

"You're not going to hunt, are you?" asked Beatrice, concern in her voice.

"Nah," said Jedidiah, seeing the relief in her eyes and hearing the similar emotion in her sigh, "I know how to make a meal from what the planet provides. Get a fire going and I'll get the necessary ingredients." Beatrice nodded, and went over to the three gems.

"Could you help me make a fire pit?" she asked the three.

"Sure," said Garnet, and found a nice patch of ground. She shoved her hands into the dirt and in mere moments had a good pit. Pearl and Amethyst went off to find rocks to keep the fire in the pit she had made, and wood to get one going. When the pit was made and wood prepared, Beatrice reached into the pit. She muttered a small incantation, and a small spark flew from her finger tips. Thankfully it was enough to start the necessary fire.

"Do you know a lot of magic?" asked Amethyst,

"A fair amount," Beatrice answered, "but my father knows much more." Beatrice looked slightly ashamed, "I've never been overly good at magic."

"No need to feel down about it," said Garnet soothingly, "what you do know has been very helpful. You made rain fierce enough to put out the fires in the village, and now you've made us a good fire." Beatrice nodded,

"Thank you," she said, "That makes me feel a bit better." A few minutes later, Jedidiah returned with the food. Berries and plants, enough to make a good sized dinner salad. He divided the plants between himself and Beatrice, and left enough for the gems in case they wanted some. Amethyst was quick to partake, but Pearl and Garnet politely declined. After a few moments around the fire, Pearl found herself asking a question,

"Jedidiah," she asked him. "Beatrice said the king became corrupted. Would you know how he did?"

"All too well," said Jedidiah. "You've seen firsthand the starvation, poverty, and overall suffering in the villages we've passed through, but things weren't always as bad as they are; Goliath used to be a good man." The gems all leaned forward, interested and wanting to hear the story. Jedidiah cleared his throat and began.

"Many years ago, when Goliath was the prince getting ready to take the throne, he was uneasy about doing so. You see, becoming king would mean he would have to marry a princess from a nearby planet to unite the two. And while the two respected each other, they didn't love each other, and they knew they would be miserable if they were forced to marry. However, the night before Goliath and the Princess, one Princess Desdemona, were supposed to marry, the King and Queen discovered that Goliath was having a secret relationship with a villager named Viola. They also found he was planning on eloping with her.

"The king and queen were furious, and told him that if he married the woman, he would never be king. This didn't seem to faze them, as they ran away and got married. With Goliath scratched off the list of kings, his younger brother David was bumped up from second fiddle to Goliath to Most Valued Prince. This turned out for the better however, as David and Desdemona did love each other. They married and did their best to rule in peace and fairness, and did a good job of it. It was perfect. Sadly, perfect never lasts.

"Only a year later, Queen Desdemona died in labor of their son, Prince Abu. Bad things come in twos, however, and King David died a few days later of a rare disease that the doctors believed was made worse by his depression for the loss of his wife. This put Donokin in a sticky situation, as now there wasn't a king. Luckily, the knights were able to track Goliath and Viola to a nearby village. They found him and told him the news, but Goliath made it clear to them that if Viola wasn't allowed to be queen, he wouldn't be king. So after a while of debating, the former king and queen had to swallow their pride and allow the peasant woman to be queen.

"So Goliath and Viola took the throne, and raised their nephew like a son. Goliath did his best to rule as fairly and kindly as his brother before him had. It was shortly into his rule that I became Captain of the Guard. For nine years afterwards, the kingdom thrived. But it seems that Donokin is cursed for tragedy in the royal family, as Queen Viola died in a Field Treader riding accident. As you might expect, Goliath was inconsolable, and he asked his court sorceress Oracle to revive her. Sadly, Oracle wasn't able to do this, the most she could do was create projections of his memories of Viola. And while this helped for a bit, its effectiveness wore off after a few months.

"Push came to shove when he threw a sword at his nephew out of anger. Abu, fearing for his life, went into hiding. I began to see signs of corruption in the king, as he began sending me on errands that were hardly just or fair. For a while, I reluctantly did what I was told, but one day, Goliath pushed me too far. He summoned me to a local village that in some way or another had incurred his wrath, he never told me how. When I arrived, he handed me a torch and just said.

"'Burn it.' 'What?' I dared to question. He looked at me with a look I will never forget, and then said 'Until it smolders. These people are traitors, Jedidiah. We must make examples of them.' I tried to defuse the situation by saying 'With all due respect, my king, I was not trained to murder the innocent.' Only to be countered with him saying 'But you were trained to follow orders.' Rather than obey this monstrous order, I tossed the torch into a nearby water trough. Goliath looked at me with disgust and simply said,

'Insolent coward.' He summoned one of the troops he summoned to strike me, and then hold me down. 'The sentence for insubordination is death.' He shook his head and sighed at me, 'such a pitiful waste. You threw away a promising career.' I dared to look him in the eyes and say 'consider it my highest honor, sir.' He signaled one of the troops, who you now know as Captain, to cut my head off. But something happened. I never quite figured out what, but I think one of the local villagers threw a rock at Goliath's Field Treader. This caused the lizard to panic, jerking so violently it threw Goliath to the ground, and started running in my general direction.

"The guards were distracted and I was able to knock them down and get on the fleeing lizard. Goliath ordered his men to fire arrows at me, but not hit his ride. They managed to do this, and I was knocked off the Field Treader, a good sized gash in my shoulder. I remember Goliath looking down at me with disdain and said,

'That was a very poor choice, Jedidiah. The history books will not remember you as a gallant hero, but a defiant idiot.' He stomped on my face and I was out. I woke up in a cell with Beatrice, who had been mistaken for a female bandit, and she was able to fix my shoulder. We managed to escape and launched a campaign to overthrow Goliath, and began searching for the prince. A few months and recaptures later, here we are." There were a few moments of silence in the group.

"Oh dear," Pearl said, "just goes to show that power and loss can lead to corruption."

"Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely." Added Garnet.

"Well in any case," said Jedidiah, "Beatrice and I need to rest. Try not to wonder off; Sonic Yards are very hard to find at night." Jedidiah and Beatrice set about creating their shelter. They found a tree with a branch fairly low to the ground, and Beatrice set about making a tent-esque structure out of sticks and leaves. Jedidiah found some good sized rocks and used them to hold the shelter in place when he put it over the branch. Thus, he and Beatrice lay down in the shelter and slept. Garnet tossed some dirt into the fire pit to extinguish the blaze.

"Are we sure we can trust him?" asked Pearl,

"Even if we can't," said Garnet, "the people seem to love him, praising him as a hero, like Beatrice said. Like it or not, he's our only hope for finding Steven. If he betrays us, he will regret it. But for now, we have to trust him." Pearl nodded, but was still nervous to high heaven. What were his goals? Only time would tell.


End file.
